Free Tool
Performance Cycle Cost Calculator
Expose the hidden cost of your review cycle. See exactly how many hours and dollars your organization burns on performance reviews.
Review Types
Enter your employee count to see potential savings
Why Calculate Your Performance Review Costs?
Performance reviews are essential for employee development and organizational success, but they come with significant hidden costs. Managers spend an average of 210 hours annually on performance reviews, and employees spend roughly 40 hours per year on review-related activities. Understanding these costs is the first step toward optimizing your review process.
How This Calculator Works
- Enter your employee count: Start with the total number of employees in your organization or team.
- Configure review types: Enable or disable self reviews, peer reviews, upward feedback, and manager reviews. Adjust the number of questions for each type.
- Adjust advanced settings: Fine-tune your average hourly rate, review frequency, and span of control for more accurate estimates.
- See your results: Instantly view the total time and cost of your review cycle, plus potential savings with AI-powered automation.
Time Benchmarks Used
Our calculator uses industry-standard benchmarks based on research from SHRM and other HR organizations. Here's how traditional review platforms compare to Windmill:
| Activity | Traditional | With Windmill | Why Windmill is Faster |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fact-Finding | 30 min per employee | 0 min | Windy surfaces accomplishments from connected work tools automatically |
| Self Reviews | 12 min per question | 20 min total | AI drafts the review; employees just edit and approve via Slack |
| Peer Reviews | 5 min per question per peer | 5 min per peer | Quick Slack conversations instead of lengthy form submissions |
| Upward Reviews | 5 min per question | 5 min total | Conversational feedback collection removes form fatigue |
| Manager Reviews | 15 min per question per report | 5 min per report | AI generates drafts from self-reviews, peer feedback, and work data |
Windmill times based on real customer data from completed review cycles.
Example: With 5 questions per review type and 3 peers, a single employee's traditional self-review takes 30 min (fact-finding) + 60 min (5 questions × 12 min) = 90 minutes. With Windmill, that same self-review takes just 20 minutes — a 78% reduction.
How Windmill Reduces Review Time by 90%
Windmill is an AI-powered performance review platform that automates the most time-consuming parts of the review process. Our AI assistant, Windy, collects feedback via Slack, surfaces forgotten accomplishments from your work tools, and generates review drafts automatically. The result? Teams complete their review cycles 90% faster while maintaining (and often improving) review quality.